proposal book no spreads
DESCRIPTION
proposal book without spreads, second try.TRANSCRIPT
College of ComputingProposalOctober 26, 2000
Jeffrey Lasky, Director, IT Lab
Edith Lawson, Chair, IT
Michael Lutz, Chair, SE
Wiley McKinzie, Dean, CAST
Carol Richardson, Chair, ECTET
Walter Wolf, Chair, CS
College of Computing ProposalOctober 26, 2000
IntroductionDue to forty years of extraordinary reductions the unit costs of processing, storage, and
networking, computing has become ubiquitous. In parallel, due to the almost limitless
scope of software-based applications, computing also has become pervasive. Together
with the emergence of the Internet, these forces define an inflection point in the history
of computing: an irreversible global shift the use of digital platforms in most of society’s
endeavors. In turn, this shift driving the escalating demands for qualified computing and
network professionals. These demands show no signs of abating; indeed, continuing
advancements in computing technology and the resulting expansion of computer use
guarantee robust demand for computing professionals into the foreseeable future.
At RIT, evidence of this demand is visible in the growth of CAST’s computing programs:
computer science, information technology, and software engineering (the latter
joint with KGCOE). Likewise, our programs New Media and the planned program in
bioinformatics validate the expanding scope of computing. As a leader in career-
oriented technical education, RIT must embrace computing and other critical 21st
century technologies; otherwise, RIT risks losing its leadership position more forward-
looking universities. Given this state of affairs, strategic imperative for RIT to articulate a
clear acknowledgement of computing’s centrality the future successes of the Institute.
By doing so, RIT will more likely meet the expectations of students and their parents, as
well as our alumni, business and government partners, and other supporters.
The creation of a College of Computing simple and effective way to realize this
acknowledgement. Several of RIT’s competitors, including Carnegie Mellon, Georgia Tech
and soon Cornell, have created Colleges based on the computing disciplines. They and
others already have understood that the world of the future will be primarily a digital
one and thus are positioning their institutions accordingly.
The proposal first expands on the rationale for creating the college. This is followed
by discussion of the new college’s components. The final section focuses on issues of
college organization and administration.
RationaleThe creation of a computing college will provide a coherent focus for the computing
disciplines at RIT. This is important for a number of reasons. First, the disciplines
themselves are beginning to converge as they reflect the commonality of an underlying
digital science. This emerging convergence is apparent in the areas represented at
professional meetings and in professional journals, as well as in computing curricula. Our
computing faculty embrace convergence and need to develop jointly new innovative
programs, provide additional academic enrichment activities for students, and work
collaboratively on applied research projects. Generally speaking, these activities are not
taking place. Missing is a shared computing culture that would promote and support
synergistic work. A computing college will provide the identity that is critically necessary
for the growth of such a culture.
Second, widespread competition for our candidate
students must be expected. The demand for qualified
graduates has not only pushed up salaries but has
also increased the visibility of the computing field.
Even though our computing programs are innovative,
high quality, and sizable in terms of faculty, students,
and facilities, the programs have not yet achieved a
level of visibility that is consistent with their relative
distinction. We believe the most significant factor
impeding increased visibility is the amorphous nature
of CAST. The establishment of a computing college
will immediately sharpen and focus attention on RIT’s
notably achievements in computing education. The
resulting increase in visibility will protect and improve
our competitive position, help recruit scarce faculty, and
better support fund raising initiatives.
Third, CAST has approximately 6,000 students and over 30 degree granting programs.
Any Dean of CAST must attend to many diverse matters and so cannot allocate a
preponderance of time to any one area. However, the potentials of the computing
disciplines continue to be so vast that they require a Dean’s full-time attention to
maximize their contributions to RIT. The College of Computing will begin operations with
the approximately 3,000 students that are currently enrolled in the CAST departments of
computer science, information technology, and software engineering. The remainder of
CAST in turn will be a more manageably sized college of approximately 3,000 students
and better able to pursue its traditional mission as an incubator and home for innovative
academic and instructional delivery programs.
College of Computing ProposalOctober 26, 2000
The proposed academic components of the College of Computing are simultaneously
core disciplines and enabling disciplines. As such, the new college will be available to
participate in any RIT program where computing an enabling technology. The college’s
contributions can range from providing computing and networking service courses to
joint program development, needed and determined by the other colleges. The ongoing
planning process for the proposed program in bioinformatics strongly demonstrates the
benefits of sharing RIT’s core computing competencies across the Institute. Over time,
we expect the emergence of additional computer- enabled programs at RIT and so the
entire RIT community will continue to benefit from the creation of this new college.
Presently, RIT is the leader in computing education. However, other institutions are
pursuing leapfrog strategy, entering the marketplace with College-level computing
units. Northeastern University led the way by establishing its College of Computer
Science in the early 80’s. This was followed by similar developments at tier-I research
schools, most notably Carnegie-Mellon University (whose School of Computer Science
is on par with the colleges at CMU), and Georgia Tech, where the College of Computing
was explicitly created to address both the science and applications of computing. More
recently, the University of Nebraska at Omaha created the College of Information Science
and Technology, and work is underway to define an umbrella unit at Cornell.
RIT needs to launch a computing college and is uniquely poised to do so. We have strong
and first program claims in information technology and software engineering, a highly
regarded program in computer science, excellent laboratories, innovative faculties, and
large enrollments. There is some urgency in moving forward quickly, in that to delay is to
run the risk of losing our leadership position and becoming just “one of the pack”.
Initially, the computing college will house the departments of computer science,
information technology, and software engineering, along with the IT Laboratory:
Computer science is the core discipline that gave rise to and supports the other
academic computing disciplines. Indeed, inclusion of computer science in the new
college is a sine qua non for the college to be taken seriously, both within the Institute
and throughout the broader community.
At RIT, information technology developed out of computer science. This historical
relationship benefited both departments, as faculty and students interested in the
foundations of computing (computer science) were continually interacting with those
who had to develop, implement, and manage the applications to which these studies
gave rise (information technology). Information technology grew to be, by far, the largest
of the computing departments at RIT. Its distinctive curriculum serves to differentiate
RET from other technological institutions. Inclusion of IT in the new college will serve to
highlight these distinctions.
College of Computing ProposalOctober 26, 2000
Similar comments can be made about the software engineering department. RIT
was the first U.S. university to advance the argument that undergraduate software
engineering was both intellectually viable and attractive to entering students. Presently,
the department is jointly managed by CAST and KGCOE, but its increasing size makes
this arrangement problematical. Given the strong connections between software
engineering and computer science, we believe that software engineering ought to be
housed in the new College of Computing. Nonetheless, the department is committed
to continuing a close association with KGCOE, as there are benefits to all parties from
collaboration in curriculum development and applied research.
The IT Lab provides a unique and essential dynamic to the college. Experience with the
IT Lab’s initial projects shows that the Lab will serve as a center of gravity to help draw
together the related yet distinctive missions of the academic programs into a coherent
college context. Projects such as those sponsored by Sun, Cisco, and IBM tend to require
faculty expertise resident in all three of the academic departments. The Lab then will be
the means by which the potential synergy among the programs will have an opportunity
to be realized in practice. In addition, since virtually all of the Lab’s discussions with
potential sponsors eventually reveal the sponsor’s interest in supporting student
development, each project is designed to support capable students on the project
teams. Integration of the Lab within the college’s administrative structure is the critical
factor for generating enthusiasm and involvement among department chairs and
faculty. The Lab will provide an ideal environment for students to pursue undergraduate
honors and graduate level research work. Overall, the presence of this applied research
unit will increase the visibility of the college, its programs, faculty and students, will
help in faculty recruitment, and will support the college’s commitment to maintaining
leading-edge curricula via sponsored faculty research and professional development.
Future Ph.D. programA new Ph.D. program will be the crown jewel of the College of Computing. Such
program will not be “just another” CS Ph.D. degree. Placing the core computing
disciplines (computer science, software engineering, and information technology) in
a dedicated college will stimulate the integration of these disciplines. In turn, a unique
opportunity is presented to design a distinctive doctoral program in applied computing.
This unique degree, while firmly rooted theory, will be clearly focused on the problems
of the computing and networking industry. The IT Lab will provide an excellent
environment in which to carry out applied research to solve these problems. We believe
a Ph.D. program is an absolute requirement for the College of Computing to achieve
national and international stature.
Proposal October 26, 2000
The primary mission of the college will the education of highly qualified
computing professionals. Faculty research and professional development will be
consonant with this mission.
Within the college, the academic components and the IT Lab will report directly to the
dean, who reports to the Provost. While it is probably desirable to create balance among
the constituent units terms of size, budget, and administration, the details of any such
reorganization will be deferred until the dean is selected and all units have a chance to
reassess their relationships to each other.
At this time, the College of Computing’s initial components exist and are flourishing.
With minimal effort, the new college can be established now by the appointment of an
interim dean and creating a college organization with administrators and staff drawn, in
part, from the CAST Dean’s Office, to house the computer science, software engineering,
and information technology departments and the IT Lab. The necessary academic
governance processes, including the college curriculum committee approval of program
transfers, will then be carried out this academic year to move these CAST programs to
the new college. During the next academic year, search will be undertaken to recruit a
permanent dean to the College of Computing.
ConclusionRIT’s future success requires a strong institutional commitment to information technology
broadly construed. The creation of a College of Computing will testify to this commitment,
and place RIT in a position to lead rather than to follow in the 21st century. Indeed, if we
are to maintain a leadership position in this essential area, the college will be established
no later than Fall, 2001, with a permanent dean installed no later than Fall, 2002.
College Organization and Administration